Couples with big weddings report happier marriages

A new report suggests that couples who hold bigger wedding ceremonies are more likely to be happy with their relationships.

Research at the University of Virginia's National Marriage Project chronicled 1,000 Americans, aged 18 to 34, who were in relationships but not yet married, over a five-year period. The participants held 418 marriages in total over the course of the study.

The couples who had large weddings, which the study defined as 150 guests or more, reported happy marriages 47 percent of the time. Those with weddings attended by fewer than 50 guests, meanwhile, reported happy marriages only 31 percent of the time.

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The researchers speculate that more guests witnessing the ceremony could make a couple want to commit more to each other. They also presented the theory that larger weddings mean more support for the couple. "Couples with larger networks of friends and family may have more help, and encouragement, in navigating the challenges of married life," National Marriage Project director W. Bradford Wilcox told Quartz.